Advisors Act as Hubs for Clients’ Lawyers and Accountants

Financial advisors are increasingly serving as central contacts for clients’ estate attorneys and certified public accountants. Advisors gather financial documents, brief attorneys in advance of meetings, coordinate tax planning with CPAs and circulate follow-up memos to keep the team aligned and reduce duplicated work and conflicting guidance.

Erin Botsford, founder and CEO of The Advisor Authority, described preparing attorneys so they would not repeat basic client history. She spent a year meeting weekly with an attorney to learn estate planning and then used that knowledge to assemble client files and brief lawyers. Botsford described her role as the client’s “financial director,” centralizing communications to limit the hours outside counsel must spend getting up to speed.

Coordination extends beyond estate work. Lee Korn, principal at Opal Wealth Advisors in Jericho, New York, noted that accountants often collect tax documents in March but that planning actions such as tax-loss harvesting can occur at other times of the year. Korn reported that most CPAs welcome collaboration when advisors make clear they are not replacing the accountant, noting, “There is no pride in authorship. The goal is for the client to win.”

Advisors also flag gaps in insurance coverage and refer clients to property-and-casualty specialists when policies omit vehicles or lack umbrella coverage. Martin Shenkman, a partner at the estate planning firm Shenkman Tietz, observed that cross-checking creates an additional safeguard: if one professional misses an issue, another adviser can identify it. Shenkman follows client meetings by sending a memo to the accountant and financial advisor and then sharing the summary with the client to ensure consistent next steps.

Professional groups support these links. The National Association of Estate Planners and Councils promotes collaboration among disciplines, and Integrated Partners runs an Integrated CPA Alliance to foster adviser-accountant cooperation and referral relationships.

Advisors taking on the central contact role say their work is largely administrative, educational and communicative rather than legal or tax practice. They collect and organize documents, explain financial context to specialists and manage follow-up. Advisors interviewed emphasized maintaining clear boundaries so attorneys and accountants remain responsible for specialized advice while the planning team works from a single, shared summary.